UPSL: Alex Lopex, Caree Collier Hat Tricks Lift SCU Heat & Soda City
- Forrest Wimberly
- 22 hours ago
- 4 min read
NATIONAL SOCCER NEWS: www.nationalsoccernetwork.com
It was a wild, 10-goal, seesaw match Saturday night in UPSL Premier Mid-Atlantic South action in Columbia, South Carolina as the South Carolina United Heat defeated the visiting Coastal Kings 6-4. The win keeps the Heat undefeated and top of the table with a perfect 4W-0L-0T mark this spring. Man-of-the-match Alex Lopez netted a hat trick for the Heat as Tom Marriott added a brace to pace the Heat attack.
The match started well for the Heat as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first 34 minutes. Adam Habas was first to pounce on a deflected shot in the 19th minute to scramble the loose ball into the net for the 1-0 Heat lead. Alex Lopez scored his first goal of the night putting away a Tom Marriott square ball in the 34th minute to seemingly put the Heat on cruise control for the match.
Against the run of play, the Coastal Kings earned a lifeline right before the half earning and converting a penalty kick to cut the Heat advantage in half. Wilmar Gonzalez Aguinaga calmed slotted the ball into the net after sending the Heat keeper the wrong way in the 39th minute to begin the Kings’ comeback. Just 10 minutes into the second half, a quick change of possession and direct ball forward opened up a narrow shooting lane at Miguel Romero used at the top of the box to roll the ball into the open nets to level things 2-2 in the 55th minute.
The Heat responded immediately with a flurry of chances scoring four quick goals in an 11-minute span to pull ahead 6-2. Alex Lopez scored in the 58th minute after collecting a ball spilled by the Kings’ keeper to make it 3-2. Lopez scored another goal to complete his hat trick in the 65th minute as his shot deflected off a defender to zoom past the frozen Kings’ keeper pushing the score to 4-2. Tom Marriott then netted the next two goals for the Heat on a penalty kick in the 67th minute and then on a thunderous shot rocketed high into the back post upper 90 in the 68th minute to make it a comfortable 6-2 advantage to the Heat.
The Heat were in total control of the match at this point in the 70th minute as thunderstorms rolled into the area forcing a lengthy weather delay in the match. After the weather delay, the Kings made the final 20 minutes of the match interesting with John Curte and Dorian Funez scoring goals in the 75th and 85th minutes, but just couldn’t close the gap anymore to catch the Heat down the stretch as the final score of 6-4 went to the hosts.
Then, was an Easter Sunday hat trick from Soda City’s Caree Collier that lifted the hosts to a 6-1 victory over the NC Ballers in UPSL Premier Mid-Atlantic South action.
Soda City jumped out to an early advantage in the 6th minute as a wide-open Collier was played a square ball inside the box for him to calmly deposit the ball into the Ballers’ net. In the 20th minute, another square ball the opposite flank, found Collier again all alone in the box for him to score his second goal of the match. Jose Flores then went on a long solo dribble up the left flank before cutting inside at the goal mouth to smash in the third Soda goal in the 38th minute to give the hosts a commanding 3-0 advantage at the halftime break.
The NC Ballers struggled all match with the quick passing and speed of the Soda attackers as the hosts were able to unlock the Ballers’ defense several times forcing several spectacular 1v1 interventions from the scrambling Ballers’ keeper.
Soda City didn’t slow down in the second half and Jose Flores was credited with his brace after a corner kick was scrambled into the Ballers’ net after a wild goalmouth scramble in the 57th minute. Just seconds later, Flores’ high press forced a turnover on the Ballers’ backline where Flores calmly slotted the ball to Collier who completed his hat trick on a tap-in goal past the helpless Ballers’ keeper for the 5-0 lead.
Soda continued to control the tempo of the match with their suffocating pressure in the midfield, and quick patterns of play in the attack. The Ballers could only look to the quick counterattack for any offense as Soda was so aggressive and commanding in their midfield defending. Soda scored a sixth goal in the 86th minute as a long-range shot handcuffed the Ballers’ keeper who spilled the ball to the feet of Jordan Lester who finished the chance for the 6-0 Soda scoreline. The Ballers did pull a goal back in the 88th minute after a quick throw-in found the Ballers’ Aiden Dudley inside the box where he quickly turned and fired the ball into the back post nets for the final score of 6-1.
Soda City climbs into third place in the table with a 2W-0L-2T (8 points) record and will be on the road at the seventh place Combine Academy on April 11. The Ballers remain at the foot of the table with a 0W-3L-1T (1point) record and have a cross-town rivalry match versus Mint Hill just ahead on April 11.
In the other matchup, the Heat will next travel to the undefeated, second-place SC Surf on April 12 in a top-of-the-table clash in the Lowcountry. The Kings slip into 8th place in the conference with a 1W-2L-0T (3 points) record and will host the Pre-College DA on April 12.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PREMIER MEDIA GROUP / NATIONAL SOCCER NETWORK /
NATIONAL SOCCER NETWORK ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61561215500230
— All Rights Reserved, Premier Media Group / National Soccer Network
